The Dental Lighthouse with Dr. Jason Tanoory

When hiring an associate dentist, what matters more: strong clinical skills or strong communication skills?
In this episode of Ramblings with Jason and Dr. Nacho, Dr. Jason Tanoory and Dr. Paul Goodman tackle a question that sparked plenty of debate: Would you rather hire an associate with 8/10 clinical skills and 5/10 communication skills, or 5/10 clinical skills and 8/10 communication skills? While 73% of respondents chose the stronger communicator, Jason and Paul both landed on the less popular choice.
They break down why improving communication may be easier than correcting clinical deficiencies, especially for practice owners who are already busy treating their own patients. From coaching associates on the language they use with patients to stepping into the operatory to troubleshoot crown preps, they discuss the very different demands each type of development places on an owner.
Jason also shares a real example of having to provide hands-on clinical coaching to an associate and why those situations can quickly become difficult for owners who are still heavily tied to the chair. Jason and Paul explore how mentorship capacity, emotional intelligence, coachability, and the realities of running a busy practice should all factor into the decision.
If you are hiring an associate or trying to develop the doctors already on your team, this conversation will challenge you to think about which skills you can realistically teach and where you need someone to be strong from day one.

Your hygiene department can be one of the most impactful parts of your practice, but without the right systems, communication, and accountability, it can also become a major source of stress.
In this episode, Dr. Jason sits down with Amber Auger, RDH, international speaker, consultant, and fractional hygiene director, to talk about what it really takes to build a high-performing hygiene department.
Amber shares the most common issues she sees inside dental practices, from rushed appointment times and inconsistent scheduling to weak handoffs, lack of accountability, and team members who are resistant to coaching. She also explains how better systems and clearer expectations can improve patient care, strengthen team culture, and create a more profitable department without making everything feel more complicated.
They also dive into time management, verbal skills, new patient appointments, hygiene KPIs, team buy-in, and how practice owners can raise the standard without creating burnout or damaging morale.
If you want your hygiene department to run more consistently, serve patients at a higher level, and become a stronger part of your practice, this episode is packed with practical takeaways you can start applying right away.Interested in seeing Amber Auger speak in person in Upstate NY next month? Sign up here! https://jason-tanoory.mykajabi.com/offers/2i4YFJi7/checkout

Dental practices spend thousands on marketing, but too often, they’re left paying for clicks and leads that never become patients. What if you only paid when a new patient actually showed up?
In this episode, Dr. Jason sits down with Cam, founder of OpenCare, to explore a smarter approach to patient acquisition. Cam explains how OpenCare matches patients with vetted dental practices, integrates with practice management systems, and uses online booking and AI-powered tools to help convert patient interest into scheduled appointments.
They also discuss what practices should realistically spend to acquire a new patient, how to measure the return on marketing dollars, why fast response times matter, and the three changes every practice can make to improve patient growth. If you are tired of wondering whether your marketing is working, this conversation offers a more transparent, results-driven alternative.
Dental Lighthouse listeners can visit opencare.com/lighthouse to learn more, book a demo, and receive 50% off OpenCare’s membership fee. You can also contact Cam directly at cam@opencare.com

If the first patient is scheduled at 8:30, when should the doctor actually arrive? The answers range from an hour early to strolling in at 8:36 with coffee in hand, and that gap reveals a much bigger leadership problem.
In this episode of Ramblings with Jason and Dr. Nacho, Dr. Jason Tanoory and Dr. Paul Goodman discuss the expectations placed on associate dentists at the beginning and end of each workday. They explore why there may not be one universally correct arrival time, but every practice needs a clearly communicated standard and a meaningful reason behind it.
Jason and Paul also examine what happens when doctors leave before their patients, skip opportunities to connect with the team, or expect accountability they do not model themselves. They explain how just 10 intentional minutes before and after the clinical day can improve preparation, patient communication, team trust, and professional development.
If you are a practice owner struggling to set expectations or an associate wondering what strong leadership looks like from your side of the chair, this conversation offers an honest look at how small habits can make a major difference.

Most professionals spend decades preparing financially for retirement without considering whether they will be healthy, connected, and fulfilled enough to enjoy it.
In this episode, Dr. Jason sits down with longevity expert Dr. Greg Charlop www.BuckheadLongevity.com to explore what retirement readiness looks like beyond the size of your investment portfolio. They discuss how proactive health assessments can uncover risks for conditions such as Alzheimer’s and cardiovascular disease years before symptoms appear, creating an opportunity to make meaningful changes while there is still time.
Greg also explains why health span, strong relationships, personal purpose, and non-work identities deserve the same intentional investment as financial security. From improving sleep and exercise to strengthening friendships and making time for experiences that cannot be postponed indefinitely, the conversation offers practical ways to build a better life now.
If you have been telling yourself you will travel, prioritize your health, reconnect with friends, or spend more time with family “once things slow down,” this episode is your reminder that some opportunities come with an expiration date. Stop treating retirement as the starting line for your life and begin creating the future you want today.

Work-life balance sounds great in theory, but life rarely divides itself into perfectly equal pieces. Some seasons require more of you, and pretending otherwise can leave you stretched too thin everywhere.
In this episode, Dr. Jason challenges the idea that balance means giving the same amount of time and energy to every area of your life. Using his final season coaching his son’s travel baseball team as an example, he explains how to identify what matters most right now and intentionally adjust your commitments in other areas.
Jason breaks life into four key quadrants: mind, muscle, meaning, and money. He shares how to go all in on one priority for a defined season while maintaining a healthy minimum in the others. He also explains why these demanding seasons need clear boundaries, end dates, and honest communication with the people affected by them.
Whether you are growing a practice, onboarding associates, prioritizing your health, or pouring into your family, this episode will help you stop chasing an unrealistic version of balance and start using your time with greater purpose.

Hiring an associate should create more freedom and opportunity, but without the right systems, it can quickly become an expensive and frustrating mistake.
In this episode, Dr. Jason shares a live presentation from Dental Nachos’ Boost Camp focused on the complete associate lifecycle: determining whether your practice is ready, recruiting proactively, choosing the right candidate, onboarding effectively, providing meaningful mentorship, and building long-term retention.
Drawing from more than 20 years of experience hiring and leading associates, Jason explains why turnover is often a leadership problem rather than a people problem. He shares the systems he uses to assess clinical competency, identify coachability, structure the first 90 days, set clear expectations, and help new associates build confidence without feeling like they have been left on an island.
You’ll also learn the key metrics that may signal it is time to hire, why bringing on an associate initially creates more work rather than less, and what top talent needs to remain engaged and committed.
If you are considering your first associate, struggling to retain the ones you have, or ready to build a practice where doctors can grow for the long haul, this episode offers a practical playbook for getting it right.

Many dentists are earning more than the average professional, yet still feel dissatisfied with their income. So, what is actually going wrong?
In this episode of Ramblings with Jason and Dr. Nacho, Dr. Jason Tanoory and Dr. Paul Goodman unpack the financial frustration affecting dentists at every stage of their careers. They explore rising student debt, higher living expenses, unrealistic income expectations, limited clinical experience, and the uncomfortable truth that earning more often requires making choices you may not want to make.
Jason and Paul discuss how investing in continuing education, strengthening communication skills, improving case acceptance, and choosing the right clinical opportunities can completely change the trajectory of a dentist’s career. They also explain why simply paying for another course is not enough. Real growth requires an investment of time, energy, money, and a willingness to put new skills into practice.
If you are unhappy with your income, stuck in analysis paralysis, or wondering why your career is not delivering the financial or professional fulfillment you expected, this conversation will challenge you to stop waiting for things to change and start taking ownership of what comes next.

In the final installment of The Power to Change Book Club series, Dr. Jason brings the entire journey full circle with one of the book’s most important lessons: lasting change isn’t built on willpower alone.
After exploring identity, training, habits, and the importance of focusing on what you can control, Part 5 shifts the conversation toward faith, surrender, and learning to rely on a power greater than your own. Jason shares a personal season when doing all the “right” things still wasn’t enough, and how admitting “I can’t, but God can” became the turning point.
Jason breaks down four practical principles from the book: renew, remain, acknowledge, and ask. He explains how to put each one into practice through daily routines, prayer, reflection, accountability, and intentionally identifying the areas where you’ve been trying to white-knuckle your way through change.
This episode isn’t about abandoning discipline, systems, or hard work. It’s about recognizing their limits. You still show up, build the habits, do the training, and sow the seeds, but when you reach the wall you can’t seem to break through, the answer may not be trying harder.
If there’s an area of your life where you’ve done the work but still feel stuck, this final episode challenges you to name the obstacle, surrender your need to control the outcome, and discover what can happen when you stop relying solely on your own strength.

Most practice owners are wearing multiple hats, but only getting paid for one of them.
In this episode, Dr. Jason breaks down a common financial blind spot among dental practice owners: understanding what you’re actually earning as a clinician, business owner, and CEO. He explains why a healthy P&L doesn’t always tell the whole story, how cash flow analysis can reveal whether you’re truly being compensated fairly, and why some owners may actually make more working as an associate than they do owning their own practice.Jason also explores how this becomes even more important as a practice grows and brings on partners. From putting a fair-market value on your CEO responsibilities to properly accounting for a spouse or family member working in the business, these numbers can have a major impact on practice valuation, distributions, and future partnership expectations.If you’re working harder than ever but wondering where the money is going, this episode will challenge you to take a closer look at what your time, leadership, and ownership are actually worth.